You're My Echo
by GeRuKai o 3o
Summary: The blonde ran faster, his muscles screaming in protest, his torso burning. He tasted iron in his mouth but he kept going. There was only one thing in his mind: run away or find him. He held on to the thought of finding him like it was his life line even if it was a slim chance. Because he knew he'd come; he would because he promised. Gakuen AU, One-sided PruCan and PruHun.


**A/N: 'ello. Ruru here. 3 Before you read anything. Go to some music-site or whatever thing and play Echo by Jason Walker. If not, download it and put it on repeat. :3 Kay? Good. Yeah. :3 Now go.**

**Done?**

**No, I don't think so.**

**Go.**

**Yeah there we go.**

**Kay. Yeah. Bhoi.**

**Oh and: I don't own Hetalia. /cries.**

**WARNING: Possible OOC'ness, and too much italics.**

* * *

_Hello, hello? Anybody out there?_

_Cause I don't hear a sound._

_Alone, alone; I don't really know where the world is_

_And I'm missing out_

Matthew stared at his reflection, studying all the scratches, bruises and cuts from the struggle. He watched as the make-up began to drip away, tainting the clear crystals of water into shades of white, peach...red.

Merde - his lip was bleeding again; he did so well in keeping the blood from leaking through pink skin. He licked the blood away and pressed his lips together, applying enough pressure to stop the bleeding. He should - no - _must_ make sure no one will know about his unpleasant encounter. He sighed, and ran a finger along a purpling bruise. How could he be so stupid?! Thinking _he _would save him when _he _was obviously too busy. He closed his eyes and let his mind wander back to the one memory he desperately wished to forget.

_I'm out on the edge and I'm screaming my name_

_Like a fool at the top of my lungs_

_Sometimes when I close my eyes I pretend I'm alright_

_But it's never enough._

"_Jones, come back here!" Carlos screamed, chasing after the Canadian with fists clenched hard._

_Matthew looked back and brown eyes locked with violet. He yelped as he felt the anger creeping up his spine. "Carlos, please!" he pleaded, "You've got the wrong twin again! I'm not Alfred, I swear!"_

_He picked up the pace, his chest erupting with pain. Each breath, each sweet take of oxygen burned. His heart pounded, as if it were trying to jump out, and it hurt by the quickening of its beat. But despite that, he kept running, letting his legs take him wherever far away from his attacker._

_Carlos cursed in Cuban, "I'm not as stupid as you give me credit for, you dumb American! I know Matteo when I see him!"_

_Violet eyes scanned his surroundings and looked for a certain albino teenager: his best friend. The man swore he'd never leave his side. He swore he'd always save him even if his hero-of-a-brother ignored him._

_Matthew surged forward, the soles of his sneakers squeaking as they brushed hard against the floor. _

Where is he? Where is he when I _need_ him?

_He had to be around here somewhere. He has to save him -_

"_I'm going to murder you, Jones!"_

_he said he would -_

"_Gilbert!"_

_he _always_ said he would -_

"_You're dead meat!"_

always.

_Cause my echo, echo_

_is the only voice coming back_

_My shadow, shadow_

_is the only friend that I have_

_The blonde ran faster, his muscles screaming in protest, his torso burning. He tasted iron in his mouth but he kept going. There was only one thing in his mind: run away or find him. He held on to the thought of finding him like it was his life line even if it was a slim chance. Because he knew he'd come; he would because he promised. And breaking promises are -_

"_Bitte, Lizzie? Do it for the awesome me?"_

_A mumbled and the voice of a self-proclaimed-awesomest-person-ever was all it took to make the Canadian stop dead in his tracks and ignore the sound of the Cuban's foot steps growing louder and louder._

'_Is it him? he thought, 'Is he going to come and save me?' A new found hope was forming in his heart. He took a deep breath, "Gil...?"_

"_That's awesome! Awesome, awesome."_

_His face brightened, and a small smile crept up his lips, "Gil!" _

"_Ja, I know, I know. I promise I'll treat you to something later. Ja, I won't forget. Ja it won't happen again. No, seriously, I promise! Okay, here I go. Ahem. Lizzie, I have something to say to you." _

_Matthew parted his lips, "Gilb- "_

"_Ich liebe dich, Lizzie."_

_What?_

"_I'm serious, Elizabeta, I love you."_

_No...it can't be._

_The blonde gulped, "Gil?"_

"_Want me to prove it?"_

_Matthew took a step forward, hoping it's not true, hoping it's just a lie. His eyes were locked on the figure. "Gilbert?" he whispered, voice cracked and breaths uneven._

_The Prussian leaned closer to the Hungarian girl in front of him -_

No, don't please...don't do it. S'il vous plait...don't.

_and his lips met hers._

_Listen, listen I would take a whisper_

_If that's all you had to give_

_But isn't isn't you could come and save me and_

_Try to chase the crazy right out of my head_

"Hey, birdie."

Matthew's eyes flew open at the sound of an all-too familiar voice, "G-gil! I-I..."

The Prussian cocked his head, "Are you just gonna stand there or...?"

"N-no...I'm sorry. I...uhm..." he trailed off. He found himself staring at the reflection of Gilbert Beilschmidt leaning against the wall with his arms crossed; a cocky expression plastered on the albino's face. He studied his broad shoulders, lean and muscular exterior, eyes the color of a blood red moon and - _wait, stop it, Mattie! He likes someone else, remember?_

"You better hurry up," he said with a cocky smile and chuckled, oblivious to the other's ailments, "crazy brow's looking for you. We wouldn't want him to go make a fuss about you - which is _totally_ unawesome by the way."

"Yeah...I know," he bowed his head, hiding his beaten-up features, "tell him I'll be there in a minute." His voice was soft and barely audible to the likes of everyone else, but he knew perfectly well that Gil heard every single syllable.

"Matt?" Are you okay?" Gilbert motioned closer.

"I'm fine, Gil. Please...just go. Tell Arthur I'll be there in a minute." he repeated, but in a more aggressive tone than usual.

"Birdie?" he rested his hand on his shoulder.

"I SAID I'M FINE, GIL!" Matthew's head was raised, his features exposed to the taller male standing behind him. He gulped - _merde, he knows._ He quickly looked down, "I-I'm sorry, Gil. I can take care of myself. I'm fine, I promise."

Gilbert shook his head, "No...no you're not."

Gilbert turned the Canadian around and cupping his chin. He studied the bruises, "Who did this to you?"

Matthew shook his head as he fought back tears, refusing to meet his gaze, "I-I fell."

"I wasn't born yesterday, Matt. Who did this to you?"

He could feel the anger in his voice and rage buried beneath the surface of his eyes. His hands twisted nervously as he anxiously fumbled with the bottom of his hoodie. _Oh, please, don't make me do this, Gil. Don't make me say it. Don't make me rat him out._

The albino frowned, "Matthew, look at me."

_I'm out on the edge and I'm screaming my name_

_Like a fool at the top of my lungs_

_Sometimes when I close my eyes I pretend I'm alright_

_But it's never enough_

He looked up, his friend's eyes digging into him and demanded an answer. How could Matthew lie to him? How could he deny his first, and only, best friend? He can't just say a name a point a finger - that would be going against his beliefs! Carlos is his friend too. He's nice to him and treats him to ice cream. He made Matthew feel like he was not Alfred, but Matthew Williams - but that was only when he wouldn't mistake him for his twin. Yet ratting him out wouldn't solve anything; it would only make matters worse.

"Who, Matthew?" his tone was stern and hard; more demanding than before. Gilbert wanted an answer and Matthew knew it was because Gilbert wanted vengeance.

He drew a long, shaky sigh, "Carlos...Carlos Villafuerte."

_Cause my echo, echo_

_is the only voice coming back_

_My shadow, shadow_

_is the only friend that I have_

Gilbert's expression grew dark; his red eyes glowered, glinting with danger. "Come again, birdie." he muttered between gritted teeth.

He gulped, and whimpered, "Carlos..."

"What?! Again?! What else did he do to you?!"

He shook his head nervously, "Nothing...nothing else." And that was a lie. He already ratted the Cuban out, and he can take care of everything else; why can't he do it again?

But Gilbert wasn't convinced. The Prussian gave him a deadpan look and forcibly lifted up his shirt. His eyes widened, "Mein Gott, Matthew."

The horrid expression on Gilbert's face was all Matthew needed to know just how bad his injuries were. He looked away shamefully, "I'm sorry, I...I didn't want to worry you."

How could he have done that? The realization struck him like an arrow - silent but harsh. Gilbert had always been first to tell him everything; even when it meant him calling himself 'unawesome' like he meant it - or even worse. The arrows jabbed deeper - taken out, then stabbed at him repeatedly. He had betrayed his friend's trust. His friend who'd wind up to his front door, soaked wet, just to confront him about a problem. But here he was - returning his trust with so much of an "Nothing else." with something as small like a few punches. When did he ever let himself be comforted by his best friend? Or is he really a best friend at all to Gilbert?

And that was when he truly felt alone.

He looked at the male again, and saw that he wasn't worried; he was angry.

_I don't wanna be an island_

_I just wanna feel alive and _

_Get to see your face again_

"Gott Matthew, are you so weak that you can't even defend yourself?! You know Carlos is a tough guy, but I thought you know how how to kick butt. Throw a punch once in a while, why don't you?! Or maybe, you're too nice, you think it's okay to hurt yourself! You should learn to love yourself a little more. You know, sometimes, you gotta suck it up and beat some ass! What the hell did you do to make Carlos so angry anyway? He already beat you up before, why provoke him again?! Don't tell me you're stupid too-"

"IS IT MY FAULT I LOOK LIKE ALFRED?!"

Matthew was looking straight at him, his violet eyes glinting with frustration and unshed tears. He snapped; he was sick of it; he had enough of it all.

_I don't wanna be an island_

_I just wanna feel alive and_

_Get to see your face again_

"Is it my fault that I look like him?! I mean, I get blamed for every single _fuck-up_ my brother does all because we share the exact _fucking_ face! Alfred does something mother fucking _stupid _to someone then that someone would find me and beat the _living shit_ out of me! And that someone just _had_ to be Carlos! How could he do this to me, Gil? I'm his brother - his _twin_ brother for Christ's sake! I didn't do _shit_ to him! Did I ever do him wrong, eh? I stood by him, I was there for him, and he forgets me! _Everyone_ forgets me! Hell, I wouldn't be surprised if you forget me tomorrow! And I'm _fucking_ _glad_ you haven't!"

Tears were now streaming down his cheeks and his words were echoing in his head, _'Ich liebe dich, Lizzie.'_

_Until then_

_It's just my echo_

_My shadow_

"Matthew, I -"

"But you know what? It's better off that you do! Because, before I met you, my life was a living hell, but it felt better than I feel now! You said you'd come and save me when I'm in a pinch, and I ran the fuck away from Carlos. And I found you, and I thought you'd come right over, but no - you didn't! You said you'd always be there for me - you _promised _you'd always be there for me, but you weren't then! And it broke my heart when you didn't turn up when I needed you, because I just _had_ to fall in _love _with you! I thought that if you loved me back, then everything would be okay!"

_You're my only friend and I'm_

_Out on the edge and I'm screaming my name_

_Like a fool at the top of my lungs_

_Sometimes when I close my eyes_

_I pretend I'm alright but it's never enough_

His shoulders racked as he sobbed harder. And Gilbert was just silent, listening to what he had to say. Matthew wasn't done yet. The last words were unclear from the sobs, yet understandable to his one-man audience. His voice was soft, but he wasn't calm. He looked down, "But you don't...and you never will. Because you like Elizabeta. So it'd be better off if you forget me tomorrow, and I'd just go back to my old life - before I met you."

_It's just my echo, echo_

_Oh my shadow, shadow_

The room was filled with his sniffs, and the Prussian was quiet. He looked down at his friend sadly. And the both of them knew that it wouldn't be better if Gilbert forgot about him. It would be a tragedy if he did.

Gilbert reached for the blonde, and pulled him into a hug, letting him soak his shirt with the other's tears. He petted him and pressed his lips to Matthew's forehead. "Don't cry, shh..." he whispered, rubbing circles on his back, "no matter what happens, I'll never forget you. I don't care what you say. Even if the world ends or if everything turns upside-down, I'll always remember you. Don't worry about it, Matt, okay?"

Matthew nodded silently as he hugged him back. '_It'd be okay,_' he thought, '_it'd be okay as long as he'll remember me. I'll be fine.'_ but that was a lie.

_Hello, hello_

_Anybody out there?_

* * *

**A/N: /drops dead. OTL I'm finally done with this! This songfic took me a whole week to write. If I didn't have the writer's block, then this would've taken me less than a day to finish! I have successfully conquered writer's block without waiting it out! I feel like a...a... A MINE CRAFT PLAYER THAT DUG THROUGH A SOLID PLAIN AND FOUND DIAMONDS! YESSS!**

**I actually thought of Gilbert as the 'mother-hen'. x3 He takes care of others more than he takes care of himself. So like, he looks after Mattie, but not over himself. Ya get my drift? :3**

**Carlos = Cuba**

**Ah, and this was written by Rue and Lee. Mostly Rue. :)) Lee had the block as well. xD Oh and by the way, thanks for reading. This is Rue's first fanfic and uhm, yeah thanks, man/woman/dude/thing.**

**Much love (awyiss)! -geRUkai (( Rue. ))**


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